Before I was married, I lived in a different part of the state and I would come down on long weekends and visit with my parents...sleeping over, washing clothes, and eat someone else's cooking..Basically, living the good life.
One night, my mom related to me that the neighborhood was changing, there had been some trouble from the apartment building a block away; cops every weekend, shootings, knifings, etc... Different type of tenant from when I left.
My family went to sleep and I curled up on the couch watching late nite TV. I had dozed off when there was a loud crashing sound at the front door. (double doors) with cane bolts,but you can see the doors bend inward.
Someone was yelling at the top of his voice in a different language. Then some more booming as though someone were kicking the door.
I grabbed my gun and stood to the side of the door in case he succeeded in breaking in. I was worried about the BG coming to the side yard where there were some big sliding windows and sliding doors...easy to break, so I yelled at the person or persons to stop it and said that I would call the police if they persisted.
I heard some grumbling in Spanish, then the noise stopped. Half an hour later my heartrate slowed down from going full speed.
All of a sudden, the door bent again with a loud crash. Almost looked like a battering ram were being used, this time two voices in Spanish. The noise was so loud my brother woke up and came to see what was going on. My dad and mom could sleep through a nuclear bomb. I told my brother to get his gun. This time I called the cops but it was a busy night in the county it was the county sheriff, no local pd...so, average response time would be a minimum 45 minutes.
I decided before they could kick in the door, I would go offensive...I directed my brother to take cover in a dark corner of the room and I stood just outside of the swing of the door (door swung inward) to the left of the doors.
I told my brother I did not want him firing unless I started it.
I unlocked the right door with my left hand when the banging subsided, the living room lights were out and the front porch lights were on so the BG's couldn't see in very well. Also, I picked the right door so that I could see the BG's faster to determine if any weapons were handy.
I turned my Maglite flashlight on directly into the first man's eyes and told him to stand where he was or I would shoot him. The second man started to turn and acted as if he were going to run, I told him to stand perfectly still and hammer cocked the semi-auto to emphasize what I said. (Lucky I didn't get a ND right then.)
The first BG said that this wasn't his house and I could smell the liquor on his breath. I believe he heard my brother cock his Rossi .38 revolver also.
He turned away and I was so relieved that I told he and his partner to leave and I emphasized that if he came back tonight, that we'd have the cops arrest him.
They put their arms around each other and staggered off into the night.
When the sheriff's people finally arrived (1 hour fifteen minutes after the first call.) I spent a lot of time answering their questions.

These LEO's were cool. They just asked us if they could see the weapons. They fondled the two guns for a minute or so and I locked up and they went off into the sunset.

Y'all are right...
I was young and stupid then... as opposed to old and stupid now.

Some day when it is really slow and I have a couple of glasses of Chivas, I'll put down a really long post about my many transgressions.

It's like the 105 year old gentleman when interviewed about what he attributed to his long life....He said, Good living, cigars, women, and the Shine that he made...and most important of all, by the grace of God.

So have I survived...by the grace of God (despite all the errors and bad decisions.)

Now, I will relate what really happened:

I saw the two BG's coming as they were nervously looking around, yada, yadah, yadah.
I was already coming out of my car and I drew the handgun and kept it hidden behind the door.
Here it comes...I verbally challenged them, "Can I help you, gentlemen?" One, to get some attention. Two, to halt them from closing in. (My optimum hit range is 10 to 25 feet). I figured I already had the drop on them.
Something came over me...in this case, a cloud of stupidity(overconfidence, that lack of desire to kill two living beings, a death wish?) A lack of reality....John Wayne complex? Hell, I don't know, I'm no shrink.
I deliberately shoved my gun down into the pocket Honda's have on their doors and closed my car door.
I walked towards BG#1 to his left because he favored his right. I went into unarmed M.A. mode and "bridged the gap" quickly. When BG #1 showed me his knife, I was already within trapping range and closing, I kept my eyes on BG #2.
Bad ju-ju, BG #2 had the gun.
The decision at that point was, Spyderco time? Cut BG #1 deep wide and often while controlling him and moving him towards BG #2, then close with #2, while pushing #1 into him? Since they were still lazily moving, I figured their intent to kill wasn't in power yet, so I did what I learned in the hood! Bluff!
I asked BG #1 why did he want to go 'round robbing people?
Fuzzy logic...distraction, slow down reaction time..BG #1 actually scratched his head with his right hand and tried to answer me..."They had run out of gas."
I had his left elbow in control and gently moved him towards the front of the restaurant... towards a crowd of people! I asked him where he was from...
He told me and I still kept #1 between #2 and me. #2 stayed back nervously looking around...He didn't know if he wanted to run or what.
So I took out $5 pointed at the nearest gas station, and said that it wasn't worth robbing people for and getting in trouble and there was money to help him get home. I left him standing on the outside edge of the crowd and I snaked through the middle and into the restaurant to the pay phone to dial 911. I kept an eye on them until they left...to drive to the gas station.
Then I immediately left the premises.

Crazy M******F*****? Dumb ****? Yes, I am, but I figured that I am living on borrowed time. I lost 11 buddies during my tour in 'Nam. We all signed up together ...only three of us are stateside, the rest are HOME. By the Grace of God....

Say what you will...my wife and daughter know that I take chances when only my life is at stake. Otherwise, I am one of the most low key folks that you have ever met.

Over at a friend's place (in an apt complex). The neighbors upstairs were having a party and it was getting rather loud. The guy I was with was not appreciating the noise. So regularly throughout the night he would bang on the celing with the blunt end of a 2x4 he said he used regularly. Well this night, he'd had about all he could stand.. so he repediately banged on the ceiling very hard for some time. It was at that point that we heard several people break for the door and come running down the stairs. There was a extremely loud crash at the front door which was a substitue for a knock I suppose. My friendly slowly picked up his Nirinko (sp?) Remington 870 knockoff and proceeded to the front door. He slowly opened the door with his left hand while simultaniously cocking the shotgun in his right hand (one handed style) and simply said "Can I help you gentleman?" I stood there in amazement as 4 of the largest guys I've ever seen seemed to -CENSORED--CENSORED--CENSORED--CENSORED- in their pants before sayin "No man! Its cool!!" and tripped over each other takin' off up the stairs..

I admit.. it was about the dumbest thing I'd ever seen.. but I wouldn't expect anything less from a half-crazed X-marine.

On a side note.. they all moved out that month.

------------------God, Guns and Guts made this country a great country!

oberkommando sez:
"We lost the first and third and now they are after the Second!(no pun intended)"

As seen in Atlanta's AJC, The Vent: "Hey, where do you sign up for one of Mr. Gore's new giveaway programs?"

If someone forcibly enter my front door, he will be met with many double taps on his chest. I will not give any rational assessment anymore, because anyone who will break in in a holy hour and he or she might be armed, I always considered a threat to my life and my family. I just imagine, how an occupants reacted nor in a state of fear if there is a sudden situation like that. The reaction is, the occupants will be surprised and if they can hold their composure they will get their arms and there is a simultaneous shootout or whatever. To hell with the law (if I still need to assess the BG's if there is grave threats to my life) with their action only of breaking in and my fear on that moment is enough for me to react for self defense. I always reiterate, better to answer things in court and be in prison for a while if thigns got worst rather then being dug in the ground forever (caused by man).

In some areas, the police are unreliable and it would be the same as to movies that they just arrived after the crime (as the case maybe). Thus, they cannot help immediately if you need them (per police/population ratio).
Just on the night of Sept 3, this month, my business establishment was robbed. When I got in, I saw that a lot of documents were scattered, drawers were opened, some locked drawers were forcibly opened and a few items were taken, until now I am assessing if what are the things lost.

My point here now, is when I reported this matter to the authority, the dammed head of that precint said to me, "you must know yet what are lost and come here for blotter purposes). I told him, sir, I come here to report and you will go there to check the area. "I thought" if things happened like this, the authority concerned will visit the area being robbed and do some kinds of investigation perhaps finger printing or whatever things they can do as a lead to find out the robbers. Well the things robbed are not that material, but my point is all citizens are equal rich or poor if it comes to crime prevention. To make the story short, I just leave the place where I had reported the crime. Then suddenly they came over and just asked several questions and listed down the lost things (that's how it ended their investigation).

As an advise don't rely so much on the police for the protection of your properties and your life, do something of your own to respond on any situation. As the other poster said, it took few hours before they will come for they might not be able to respond all calls, or they might just be busy on something else and they have also priority.

"Abide some of the rules and learned to break some also for your survival".

I was living in an apartment back in the late 80's when we had one of those bad cold spells. Someone calls the manager and said the pipes had frozen and busted and there was water in their apt from the one with the bad pipes. The manager and the maintance man start going door to door looking for the bad pipes. The maintance man at 330am UNLOCKS my front door! It is amazing how quickly you can go from a deep sleep to cocked and locked with a Taurus PT 99 pointed at his chest. He had made it about three steps into my apartment. I laughed as I heard him yell SH!T someone lives in that one. (like the bumb ba$tard didnt already know) He or the manager ever said another word about that night to me again. I did start using the chain lock on the door after that though.

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